Among the nine states where value-based purchasing is taking place, Tennessee has the highest percentage of agencies that earned 5 stars, according to an HHL analysis of April 2018 data on Home Health Compare.
 
Among the 123 Tennessee agencies that earned star ratings in April 2018, 15 agencies earned 5 stars in quality of care.
 
That’s 12.2% of Tennessee’s home health agencies.
 
Maryland (12.0%) and Florida (10.3%) also stand out for their high percentages of 5-star agencies.
 
LHC has several top Tennessee agencies
 
In Tennessee, seven of the 15 5-star agencies in quality of care are owned by LHC Group.
 
Even beyond star ratings and value-based purchasing, quality has been “a tremendous focus” for LHC, notes Andrea Vidrine, LHC’s vice president of quality and performance improvement.
 
LHC assessed each of those Tennessee agencies’ strengths and weaknesses and came up with location-specific improvement plans, adds Susan Sylvester, LHC’s division president of operations for Tennessee.
 
Note: among the 194 home health providers that are part of LHC overall, 75 earned 5 stars in quality in April 2018, according to Vidrine. That’s 39% of the company’s providers.
 
Among the strategies LHC says it uses to stand out on quality:
  • Focusing on developing patient assessment skills through comprehensive OASIS education and competency practicum.
  • Developing pathways for specific disease processes to ensure best practices are consistently utilized. This paves the way for optimum individualized outcomes for every patient entrusted to our care.
  • Striving to assure that each patient — and the patients’ family members — are involved and have input into the care plan and goals and are therefore satisfied with the services staff provide.
  • Having concurrent management of each patient’s “episode of care” and “engagement from all levels of the organization” as two additional points.
 
5-star agencies in states participating in value-based purchasing
 
Florida has 78 5-star agencies in quality of care, while Tennessee has 15, according to an HHL analysis of April 2018 data on Home Health Compare.
 
Measure
Nationwide
Ariz.
Fla.
Iowa
Mass.
Md.
N.C.
Neb.
Tenn.
Wash.
Number of 5-star agencies
460
6
78
1
5
6
6
1
15
2
Agencies that earned star ratings
8,901
123
754
122
152
50
163
54
123
59
Percentage of agencies that earned 5 stars among agencies that earned star ratings
5.2%
4.9%
10.3%
0.8%
3.3%
12.0%
6.7%
1.9%
12.2%
3.4%
 
Source: CMS’ Home Health Compare